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I'm not sure if it's the done thing to post in this thread without an attached image, but fuck it I'm going too anyway because I can't find a more suitable thread. I got my first ever tattoo yesterday! It is the first part of a full, left-arm sleeve by Valerie Vargas and of course it is amazing. In general I did not find the pain too bad, although the forearm is probably low down on the list of painful places to get tattooed. But I also put it down to a childhood of almost constant summer sunburn, and the artist' deft hand. Also, I was distracted by the workings of the shop, and Dante's entertaining patter. The flush of endorphins in response to the pain was bizarre, and left me feeling pretty stoned. That started wearing off just at the point where Valerie decided to stop - mercifully. A three-hour train journey back to Wales involved me avoiding getting smashed into, and then it was home to wash the tattoo. What I wasn't prepared for was the fucking plasma dripping off my arm. I have seen my wife's tattoos fresh after being done but that was nothing compared to the snot my arm was exuding. It was Bill Murray in Ghostbusters levels of slime. I have to admit to being fascinated by how the body reacts to the trauma of tattooing. A day later and it is like a mild sunburn and looks fucking great. If Valerie is cool with it, I will put some images up after the next session.

Fuck Me Running!!! Hell yeah. Backyard Of Ages!

the whole 'do what you want' fills me with dread, mostly cos every time it crops up bar once they never really mean it. it usually involves me having to think about ideas, since they arent giving me anything to go on and taking time to develop them into a design. the few times it's been requested of me, ive mentioned skulls or animals and i could see them shrug ever so slightly and then the words come out, 'i'm not really a fan of skulls...' or 'i was thinking more of a girl with a pocketwatch/magpie/victorian artefact...' my thing is, that if you just want something, ask for it, dont tell me to go crazy then say youre not into what i just said, specially when im not even pushing the boat out. it's not doing me a favour letting me do what i want, its giving me a headache, i much prefer some direction or a seed of an idea. the combination is much better than starting out cold. also, one week i might really wanna do a blood thirsty warrior and maybe i wanna do a 2 headed medieval dragon the next, my reference and influences change from week to week, i dont keep a list of things i wanna do, maybe some tattooers do but i dont. my conclusion on this is, only ask your tattooer for whatever they wanna tattoo if you are 100% sure you can live with yourself wearing whatever they come up with on your skin forever, and if you can't, then give them a couple of ideas or ask if theres something theyve been thinking theyd like to do recently and keep it open.

@Ursula and everyone else who weighed-in, thanks for voicing up. In order to know what a good tattoo is VS a bad tattoo OR a bad tattoo VS a mediocre tattoo and so on, one must often see the difference. It's an open forum so this is part of it though we thought ahead, somewhat, and put some things in place... -Use the 'like' button because photos/tattoos that are most 'liked' rank higher and appear on the first pages. -Next, there is the comments section so leave feedback on both good, mediocre, and bad tattoos but be respectful. -Lastly, everyone starts somewhere in getting tattoos and more often than not we start getting bad tattoos first and it is not til we learn what a good tattoo is and/or someone offers constructive criticism that we realize I need to get better tattoos or some time passes and you take note its all bleeding together or its fading much faster than it should. This site is aimed at all interested in tattoos so all have the opportunity to learn and get better tattoos. Shit, I was in a shop topless the other day getting tattooed and I know when ever this happens around those who know tattoos I am going to get comments on my bad tattoos so I laugh with them while getting better tattoos.

Found another one...

Good morning LST :cool: I just got back from Japan and I'm well and truly jet lagged, but before I crash for a few hours before work this evening, figured I should share this... I'll post the blog I promised later ;) Duffa must sleep now zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz (seriously need to, I'm talking in third person lol)

Yeah. That just happend. BAM.

No worries pal. They are also called abdominal pads and dont stick to wounds. They are great for covering up intestines that have leaked out from penetrating injuries. But I think they work better for tattoos.

He was a little crazy from what I have read about him as well. There are no animals around him... but there is a massive eagle chest piece right above him... I think that works out okay.

Well if that dosn't convince the parole board, I don't know what will.

Made cookie dough cupcakes. It's exactly as disgustingly sugary as it sounds.

say fuck it and quit your suit and tie job? :D

California has basically made it impossible to own a legit AR-15. Im going ak47 first....simple cheap and even a child can use it. 1911 tho is my favorite handgun....so classic and with a nice one I feel the most accurate. Also like 357 revolver and really would like an M-1 garand for my higher caliber rifle. Ahhh I love tattoos, music and guns.

the "faith" part of my brain must have broken at one point since I never believe anything without at least a hint of skepticism. Hell if I never fell I would say gravity was a lie! I also know a few literal Christians/Muslims. The problem is that the whole "believe without questioning" wanders to other topics outside of that which is religious, in my observations. Argument put as such..."I know your wrong...ME: Well look at this xyz....THEM: I dont care about looking at xyz....ME: But it is solid PROOF!....THEM: I dont believe you...ME: YOU NEVER LOOKED!!!!.....THEM: I dont have to, I know your wrong" This was an actually conversation (non-religous subject)

I have Baphomet on my left hand. So unless I'm wearing gloves I pretty much always have to rock the 'uncomfortable looks/questions' risk every time I talk to people. A little kid asked me once if it was "The Devil". Instead of getting all wordy, I said "yeah, because the DEVIL IS COOOOL". He smiled, the little scamp. Even kids love the dark lord.

There are very rare examples of people with only good tattoos in my personal experience. I guess it is just a part of the process

New one got done yesterday. Super stoked. 2 lady heads 1 leg

I agree with Iwar. I try and be a little vague just to see what they can come up with. I will say sometimes I stare over their shoulder during the drawing process and yell violently to add or remove shit.

So I just read the first 15 pages and I'm skipping the last 10. What have I learned from all this? Next time I go to get a tattoo, I am just simply going to point at the artist, point at the location I want something done in, and then point to the reference material I brought with me so as to not offend anyone.

Perhaps we should suggest a "dislike" feature?

Just get more tattoos!

P.s everyone start going nuts hitting 'like' on the better tattoos ;)

If she'd had enough money she could have had the "re" tattooed on the end.

I still want to get a St.Francis too.I just cant think of a better image than him in the garden with all the animals.And the fact that he was a real person,and not someone made up.

AHHH thanks for using the proper terms for these. One of the guys who tattooed me used these things when he Saran-wrapped me up and I could never figured out what they were called. Thanks!

So what if these guys get all famous and untouchable - theres plenty of good artists out there, you just gotta find them lol ...

It was called both Ink Wars and Tattoo Wars dependent where it was shown I think

I want to not care and shrug it off and pretend it's not even a blip on the radar, but I'm probably gonna end up watching at least one episode, then getting kind of generally bummed out like I knew I would. I think a big part for me, as a tattoo-getter, is when your average Joe wants to name drop people simply because they were on TV, and not because he picked up a book or your buddy's old magazines or tracked that person down and actually got tattooed. Or hell, even likes that person's work or could tell you why it's any good (or not good). Because it doesn't mean anything to that person other than just a name on TV. That seems to be hardest part for me to get past. But people are gonna watch the shit out of this show, so get ready..

I'd be bummed if it was on me. Once you get lots more tattoos from good artists it probably won't bother you as much anymore though. If you let us know where you live I'm sure someone here will know a good artists in that area.

Went into Tahiti Felix's Master Tatto last Friday and got this spur of the moment on my elbow By Phil Hatchet Yau

First off I write way too much!!! Sorry. Anyway, my consult setup has definitely changed as I've collected new tattoos. Mind you, I've only been tattooed by one artist so my trust and faith is pretty high. For my first tattoo I was pretty specific what I wanted. Not necessarily clinging to a sketch but rather brought in samples of pieces similar to how I wanted the tattoo to flow on my arm and also specified details of what I'd liked in other tattoos my Artist had done of the same subject. I had a very clear image in my mind and in hindsight it may have left her little freedom. Subsequent pieces, like the piece on my leg and my back piece, I've loosened up and only told Jill (Bonny) the subject matter/location and then she'd go to town in creating something. Or in the case of my right sleeve, rather than even specifying a subject, I've asked for her suggestions on what would pair off well with the left. By the time the left was finished I just ran with it. I agree with everyone regarding seeing stencils for the first time too. For my back, I specified the subject Oda Nobunaga. Having been happy with all her previous work, I was vague with her for the very purpose of wanting to see what she would come up with. When the time came to start the piece, upon seeing the stencil I was not disappointed. During the consult, we'd arrived at a rough idea of what would be cool, but later she turned it on it's head and came up with something that was completely different but embodied what I'd wanted even better. Now that we're expanding and adding background to it, she suggested what she thinks will work and I just follow along having faith in her experience and vision for what she has planned. After all, I'm not the artist, she is. Besides, even if I wasn't rusty at drawing, I certainly haven't designed a back piece before, right! I just had a session this past Thursday where she added a pair of namakubi (decapitated heads) to the back of my right thigh. She set about applying the stencil and went to work. I didn't even see the tattoo or placement until I got home. Jill had shown me the stencil of one of the heads prior to starting so I had an idea what was being placed but I would have ran with it even if I hadn't.

Over the course of the last year and a half I got bit by the tattoo bug really bad. I've been in the chair 14 different times in that span, and it's all because I found the artist who can translate my ideas into tattoos i really want to wear for the rest of my life. Every time I've gone in to see him so far it's been one of these three ways: 1) "I've got this old tattoo from the (80's or 90's), would you be willing to fix it? You can do whatever you want to make it better." 2) I don't tattoo, but I can draw respectably well, enough so that I can take an idea to him on paper and say "Can you make this work where I want it? Do whatever you need." 3) Go in with the vaguest of reference materials and say "I'd like something with a lucky horseshoe and a black cat, do whatever you want." Almost shit myself when I saw what he came up with. And ended up with my current favorite tattoo on my body. So far, trusting the the guy that is gonna tattoo me has been working out really well for me. Maybe it helps that I don't attach any deep meaning to any of my tattoos, I'm just really drawn to the style of art that tattoos represent. Just my 2 cents.

I normally just go in with either and idea or small piece of reference and then let the artists do what they want with it. Most of my work is done by the same artist so we're pretty much always on the same page (I hope) and I'm always happy for him to try out new ideas. There are only a few things I won't get tattooed on me but most of the time my reaction to a tattooers' idea is "Yeah sure." Even if it means coming out with roses twice the size I though I was getting :D

jaie devore at perfection in austin it stares at the purple one on my other leg

I enjoy the artistic license afforded me by my customer, with a general subject. I follow some simple old rules that have worked for a long time. When they look at a refined line drawing, they get the idea. I hate seeing money go out the door, so I will draw as long as my schedule allows. Getting off my sometimes lazy ass and doing a color study usually results in a stoked customer and a way better tattoo. I have noticed this, people come in with a better description and more willing to make the attempt at conveying their desire since the television shows. Some tattooers get grumpier with age, but the cool head always prevails.

1) I do enjoy freedom when designing a tattoo, but I have learned over the years to pry into the clients thoughts as deep as possible before putting pencil to paper. It's easy to spot a client who is willing to give me total freedom, but if I see an ounce of "control freak" in a client I spend the time consulting their ideas until I feel like we are on the same page.(even a walk-in) 2) I would redraw a design as many times as took to please the client. I have had many clients that simply wasn't happy until the design looks like a they drew it them self in 8th grade. Once it reaches this point I respectfully decline to do the tattoo. I will add this. My rule is, I will do anything to please the client, but I draw the line when I have to send something out the door I'm not proud of.

i think it's best to just say "i'd like (whatever it is you want)" and then if you've chosen the right person they should need no further pointers.

I got my Yodaskull from Marcus at the weekend - Im guessing that its not too many peoples on here's taste as its b&g real-sh-ism.

Sure,the legs have previously been posted on here I think by Petri (they alone made most people crumble to their knees in disbelief).I've found a wide angle shot of the full back and hamstrings ,and another of the chest in -progress .Pretty sure its all the same dude and also sans sleeves .

We were all getting our hair cut at the barber shop down the street and he asked if we all "operate an ink gun". I said I beg your pardon. "Do you sling ink!" he insists. My boss just look at him and says "Yeah I tattoo." Then he changed the subject and we started talking about firearms.

How the old school boys do it-Bill Loika ,Tattoo Peter Amsterdam.

This is a map of every pizza place in Manhattan

As some of you may know I'm getting married next year. Last night I spend some time looking at dresses online. Here's my top choices, help me choose guys!! So this one is pretty hot, I have to get pregnant though first and since my dude is in another country it might be hard to get that pregnant by the wedding. Very sexy and we are getting married in Florida so I wouldn't have to change into my bathing suit for the beach unfortunately I don't have boobies like that so I dunno if it would look good on me :( This one might though!! been calculating my period so I don't have it when I get married, but just in case I'm bookmarking this dress. I might just say screw it to the traditional white gown and go Hillary style though. Help guys, I really don't know which to get!!!!!